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CATEGORY - SCHOOL: YALE

Monday, November 17, 2008

BusinessWeek 2008 Business School Rankings: A Closer Look

Today we’ll take a closer look at how the various top programs fared in BusinessWeek’s most recent business school rankings, released last week.

Chicago Booth held firmly to the number one spot it secured in the 2006 rankings, boasting high scores in both the corporate recruiter and graduate surveys. Harvard Business School (HBS) and Wharton traded places this year, with HBS climbing to number two and Wharton slipping to number four. BW’s Louis Lavelle attributed Wharton’s slide to a poorer showing in the intellectual capital category this year than in 2006. 

Columbia, meanwhile, advanced from the number 10 spot to number seven, but MIT Sloan and Berkeley’s Haas School of Business each slipped slightly. Also noteworthy was the fact that Southern Methodist University (18) and Brigham Young University (22) each cracked the top 25 this year for the first time ever. SMU, for its part, has been among the participating schools for years, but lacked sufficient response rates in the recruiter and student portions of the ranking to secure a top spot before now, according to BW’s Geoff Gloeckler.

There were also two newcomers to the Global MBA rankings, IE Business School (2) and Oxford’s Saïd Business School (10). Like SMU, IE has long been a participant but until this year had insufficient recruiter and student response rates, Gloeckler said.

Yale School of Management, meanwhile, seems to have fallen back slightly. It came in at 24 this year, down from 19 in 2006. Lavelle attributed its fall to low student survey scores.

In an article accompanying the rankings, BW takes a look at the current business school landscape, which it says is marked by surging application rates amid “wretched” recruiting prospects.

As has historically been the case in times of economic downturn, application rates to business schools are rising steadily. According to the BW report, schools are reporting double-digit increases in application volume. Chicago Booth, for example, has seen a 20 percent surge in attendance at information sessions around the globe.

But even as more students clamor to get in, job prospects upon graduation are uncertain, with some schools bracing for the toughest MBA job market since the dotcom bust. “I think next fall is going to be very, very difficult,” George Daly, dean of Georgetown University’s McDonough School of Business, told BW.

The article went on to cite a survey by umbrella group MBA Career Services Council, in which 70 percent of 77 participating schools reported a downturn in full-time recruiting opportunities in financial services in October.

As a result, some students are shifting their focus from investment banking to consulting and other fields. Attendance at recruiting presentations by consulting firms is standing room only, New York University’s Stern School of Business Dean Gary Fraser told BW.

A shift is also taking place in the classroom, as professors are introducing new case studies and re-writing syllabi as part of an effort to make sense of the financial crisis and market upheaval.

Risk management, meanwhile, is expected to play a much more important role in business school curriculums over the next three to five years, according to the BW report, a trend that Robert Meyer, co-director of Wharton’s Risk Management & Decision Processes Center, calls “potentially transformational.”

Tuesday, November 11, 2008

Former Yale SOM Dean Spearheads Employee Education at Apple

As reported here last month, Joel Podolny has left his post as dean of the Yale School of Management (SOM) to head up Apple’s own university program. According to a report in Apple Insider, the new program, which will kick off early next year, may serve as an internal MBA program of sorts. Tapping a business school dean to head it would seem to make perfect sense.

Quoting an unnamed source claiming to be familiar with the matter, Apple Insider reports that Apple University is “intended broadly as an HR type function for developing leadership and other required skills and knowledge within the organization” and will fold in Apple’s existing learning and development organization.

Apple is not the first large company to establish an internal MBA program, the report continues. Pixar, a company founded by Apple Chariman and CEO Steve Jobs and later sold to Disney, developed a similar program for employee education and training.

“Obviously Steve Jobs knows about this concept,” a former Pixar intern told Apple Insider. “I wonder if he finally decided to tie together and probably expand a lot of separate parts of employee enrichment at Apple much like they have at Pixar under the University banner with a dean,” the intern continued.

Creating a connection between the new school and Apple’s existing iTunes University, which peddles educational content to the public, could “be a case study for selling the concept if it is used extensively internally,” Apple Insider speculates.

Monday, October 27, 2008

Yale SOM Unveils New Pre-MBA Leadership to Promote Diversity in Business

Beginning next summer, the Yale School of Management (SOM) will welcome promising college students of color, other undergraduates who actively support diversity and inclusion in business and recent college graduates to a two-week summer leadership development program. Applications for the first session will open on November 3rd.

Interested applicants must submit two essays, two letters of recommendation, college transcripts and test scores. Yale SOM will accept up to 50 applicants and cover the cost of their tuition, room and board, program materials and application fees. A nominal enrollment fee will be charged but refunded upon successful completion of the program. Ultimately, participants will be responsible only for their travel to and from the Yale SOM New Haven, Connecticut, campus. 

The first session of the Pre-MBA Leadership Program will take place from June 14-19, 2009. The program will follow Yale SOM’s distinct leadership model, which emphasizes developing individual leadership skills that can be applied toward solving challenging problems in both business and society. Students with liberal arts backgrounds as well as those from a more traditional MBA track are strongly encouraged to apply.

“Our goal is for students to walk away from the program feeling confident in their leadership abilities and inspired about how they can make a positive difference in the world,” said Shelley Clifford, Yale SOM’s deputy director of admissions and coordinator of the Pre-MBA Leadership Program, in a statement.

In addition to developing valuable leadership skills, participants also will learn business fundamentals through sessions devoted to data analysis, economics, accounting, finance, marketing and strategy. Field trips to corporations and business institutions such as the New York Stock Exchange will further round out the program’s offerings, as will meetings with prominent Yale SOM alumni, networking receptions and career services counseling. For students who decide to pursue an MBA, the program also will include advice on applying to business school and GMAT test preparation.

To learn more about the new Pre-MBA Leadership Program, visit http://som.yale.edu/premba. An application to the program will be available there beginning November 3rd.

Wednesday, October 22, 2008

Dean Joel Podolny Leaves Yale SOM for Apple

~BREAKING NEWS~
Members of the Yale School of Management (SOM) community learned in an email this morning that Joel Podolny will step down as dean of the school on November 1st to return to California, where he will lead educational initiatives at Apple. Sharon Oster, Yale SOM professor of management and entrepreneurship, will serve as interim dean while the school conducts a search for Podolny’s replacement.

In an email conveying the news, Yale President Richard Levin praised Podolny’s many achievements in his three-and-a-half-year tenure. “Under his creative and energetic leadership, the Yale School of Management has developed a visionary MBA curriculum that has attracted the attention of business schools and employers, both in the United States and around the globe,” he wrote.

Under Podolny’s stewardship, applications to the MBA program have risen by 50 percent, the permanent faculty has grown by 20 percent and the Yale Tomorrow capital campaign has raised $170 million toward its $300 million goal, Levin continued. “As he departs and Sharon takes charge, Joel leaves the Yale School of Management in the strongest position it has enjoyed in its 30-year history,” he added.

Following on the heels of Levin’s email was a second from Podolny himself. “This is not a decision I have taken lightly, and I am sure it comes as a surprise to many of you,” he wrote. He himself expected to be at Yale SOM for some time, he continued.

“I have often told people that I have the best job in management education, and I could not imagine taking a business school deanship or any other administrative position at another academic institution,” Podolny wrote.

Saying that he wished the call had come later in his tenure, he nonetheless could not turn down the opportunity to work for a company that, as he put it, “has had as tremendous personal meaning for me as Apple.”

After November 1st, Podolny will continue in his role as a Yale SOM faculty member, teaching and working with colleagues to further refine the school’s integrated curriculum. He will begin in his new role at Apple in early 2009.

Friday, September 26, 2008

Yale SOM Cosponsors Roundtable Discussion on Financial Crisis in New York

Partnering with the Wall Street Journal and CNBC, Yale School of Management (SOM) held a roundtable discussion Tuesday in New York on the current financial crisis, drawing together business leaders and scholars from Yale, Wharton, NYU, Columbia and Harvard to examine the state of the economy and the proposed Treasury Department bail-out plan.

“We were inspired by the outpouring of interest and the quick response to this event,” said its organizer, Yale SOM Senior Associate Dean Jeffrey Sonnenfeld. Planning began on Sunday night, and by Tuesday afternoon a staggering roster of economic thought leaders had assembled around the table to share their insights.

Among those in attendance were a former chairman of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, the former executive chairman of the Bank of New York Mellon Corporation, the president and CEO of Marsh & McLennan Companies, the president and CEO of Credit Suisse Investment Banking and managing directors and partners at several prominent boutique investment and private equity firms. A full list of roundtable participants is available here.

“That we could get everyone together so quickly is a signal of both their leadership and their concern in this growing crisis,” said Sonnenfeld. “Peer-driven learning is what is required, as there is no clear map to follow for navigating this worst financial crisis in 80 years,” he continued.

Yale SOM will post video of the full roundtable discussion as soon as it is available. In the meantime, you can view video from various roundtable participants:

• The Blackstone Group’s Stephen Schwarzman and W.L. Ross & Co. CEO Wilbur Ross
• Yale Economist Robert Shiller
• Yale SOM Senior Associate Dean Jeffrey Sonnenfeld
• Yale SOM Associate Professor Jonathan Koppell

Check back tomorrow when our continuing coverage of top business school’s responses to the current economic crisis will include outreach efforts by the Wharton School, MIT Sloan and Chicago GSB to recent alums, as well as Harvard Business School’s advice to prospect applicants on how the situation could impact future application cycles.

Monday, September 15, 2008

Scoretop Saga Conclusion: With 84 Students’ Scores Cancelled, Some Fates Still Uncertain

As reported last week in BusinessWeek and the Wall Street Journal, the Graduate Management Admissions Council (GMAC) has cancelled the scores of several students shown to be involved in the Scoretop.com scandal that came to light earlier this year.

According to various reports, the ultimate fate of these students will depend on the level of participation they had with the Scoretop website, the schools to which they applied and their current student status. (Some students involved, in fact, have already graduated from business school.)

According to GMAC spokesperson Judy Phair, the admissions council has decided to cancel the scores of only those students “against whom we felt we have airtight cases.” In total, 84 students’ scores were cancelled.

Of those, 12 students were shown to have actually posted questions themselves on the Scoretop site. Those students will be barred from retaking the GMAT exam for at least three years. The other 72 students posted messages on Scoretop indicating that they had seen certain questions on their GMAT exam. Their scores cancelled, these students will be permitted to retake the exam again immediately.

In all 84 cases, the admissions council notified schools that students had improperly prepared for the exam, although what individual schools will do with that information remains to be seen.

According to the Journal, two of the students who acknowledged that they had seen certain test questions on the Scoretop site – but who had not posted actual questions themselves – are current students at the University of Chicago Graduate School of Business. Chicago is considering action against the students, but “we haven’t decided anything,” Rose Martinelli, director of admissions, told the Journal.

Meanwhile at Stanford, 11 students’ scores were cancelled, according to the Journal report. Of those, 10 were denied admission, but one had already graduated, Admissions Director Derrick Bolton said in a statement.

Stanford plans to meet with the student who has graduated “to discuss this situation,” Bolton said. For students whose scores were cancelled and who plan to reapply, they will need – “at minimum” – to supply an explanation, Bolton continued, encouraging that they “might learn from the experience by reflecting on their actions and taking ownership for their errors, then sharing those explanations and insights with us.”

Other top business schools – including Columbia, Dartmouth, Harvard, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Yale – report that they had no students with tainted scores actually enroll. And a spokesman for the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania said in an email to the Journal that officials still “analyzing the situation are not yet prepared to discuss next steps.”

Dartmouth’s Tuck School of Business, for its part, will hold an “ethics fireside chat” this month on campus to discuss the Scoretop cheating scandal.

GMAC, meanwhile, has posted an extensive FAQ on the subject of score cancellations. It also announced that it plans to implement palm-vein scanning technology going forward to help reduce other types of fraud among test-takers, including “proxy” test taking, in which applicants hire high-scoring imposters to take the exam for them.

We’d love to hear what you think of the conclusion to the Scoretop scandal. For anyone who missed it last week, click here to participate in Clear Admit’s online poll about whether the punishment fits the crime.

Thursday, September 11, 2008

Wharton School, Law School at University of Pennsylvania Launch Joint Three-Year JD/MBA Program

The Wharton School and Law School at the University of Pennsylvania yesterday announced the launch of an accelerated three-year joint JD/MBA degree program. The program, which will begin in September 2009, will target potential applicants with around two years of experience in either law or business-related fields.

“Business today operates in a complex legal and regulatory environment,” Thomas Robertson, dean of the Wharton School, said in a statement announcing the new program. “Success requires the ability to navigate through this landscape,” he continued.

Among elite schools, the University of Pennsylvania joins several others offering a combined JD/MBA program, including Harvard, Stanford, Columbia and Yale. But far fewer schools allow students to complete both degrees in a mere three years, as the new U. Penn program does. Northwestern transitioned from a four-year to a three-year JD/MBA degree program several years ago, and the Kelley School of Business and the Indiana University School of Law—Bloomington together offer a three-year joint program as well. 

The structure of the new Penn program will be as follows: Students will spend their first year taking classes in the Law School, followed by a summer of four Law and Wharton courses designed specifically for the JD/MBA program. The second and third years will include both Law and Wharton courses, and in the summer between the two students will be expected to gain work experience in law, business, finance or the public sector.

To enroll in the three-year combined program, applicants must be admitted by both schools. Students in the joint program also must perform 70 hours of supervised pro-bono legal work as a requirement for graduation. The program is expected to enroll approximately 20 students each year.

To learn more about Penn’s new three-year JD/MBA program, click here. For a discussion of the pros and cons of an accelerated joint JD/MBA, click here.

Tuesday, August 26, 2008

Trivia Tuesday: Support for Non-Profit and Public Sector Management at the Yale SOM

It’s time again for our regular Trivia Tuesday column examining the policies, programs, and opportunities available at the leading business schools. Today we’ll take a look at the ways students are involved in the non-profit management programs at the Yale SOM.

According to the biennial survey of MBA programs published by Beyond Grey Pinstripes, Yale is among the top 25 full-time programs for incorporating environmental and social issues into their curricula and research. Yale’s high level of attention to these issues is made possible by a number of school-sponsored programs, and borne out in Yale students’ participation in events promoting social entrepreneurship and sustainable business.

Yale’s reputation in non-profit and public sector management attracts a high number of students interested in entering these fields, and the campus Net Impact chapter is one of the most active student-run organizations at the school. In addition to sending delegates to the national conference each year, Net Impact works with other campus organizations to present events for the benefit of the student body. These include an annual case competition, the Future of Philanthropy Conference, an internship forum in conjunction with the Career Development Office, and a series of panels on corporate and social responsibility.

The SOM community provides further support for students interested in public service careers though the Internship Fund, a student-run organization providing financial support for classmates pursuing careers in government, education or the non-profit sector. Founded in 1979, the fund provides a stipend for students completing summer internships at low-paying public or non-profit organizations; typically about 20% of each class has benefited from this support.

To raise money for these stipends, the Internship Fund coordinates fund-raising activities throughout the year, the most popular of which is the annual Internship Fund Auction. Conducted in three stages – an online auction for remotely-located alumni, a silent auction and a live event – the Internship Fund Auction brings the community together to donate and bid on prizes. In addition to providing bidders with an opportunity to win such prizes as bowling with Dean Podolny or spending a week in Orlando, the auction gives students a chance to share or showcase their talents. One student who is a professionally trained chef auctioned off cooking lessons, while a former competitive skater offered instruction in that activity.

For more information on Yale’s non-profit management program, campus activities, or non-profit career placement figures be sure to check out the school’s website or the Clear Admit School Guide to Yale!

Monday, August 04, 2008

MBA Grads Will Sacrifice Salary for Corporate Social Responsibility, Stanford Survey Says

Graduates from top MBA programs place corporate social responsibility high on their list of considerations when seeking employment, so much so that they will accept lower salaries to work for an employer whose values are in line with their own, according to a recent survey conducted by a Stanford Graduate School of Business researcher.

Stanford marketing strategy professor David Montgomery, together with Catherine Ramus of the University of California at Santa Barbara, surveyed 759 graduating MBAs from 11 top business schools to better understand the tradeoffs students are willing to make when selecting an employer.

What they discovered surprised them. Intellectual challenge topped the list of desirable job attributes, with money and location, which tied for second, ranking only 80 percent as important. “Had money not been ranked high, I would have thought I’d made a mistake,” Montgomery said in a release.

Trailing for a close third was an employer’s reputation for ethical conduct and caring policies toward employees, which students ranked 95 percent as important as a job’s financial package (and 75 percent as important as intellectual challenge). Montgomery, who was surprised to discover that ethics and caring about employees ranked so high, is hopeful about what the findings may mean. “This augurs well for the character of the 21st century MBA,” he said.
 
Montgomery’s study of MBA job preferences actually began some 30 years ago, part of his work to demonstrate that conjoint analysis – a statistical technique used in market research to determine how people value different factors that make up a single product or service – could accurately predict behavior. Working with the late Yale School of Management Professor Dick Wittink, Montgomery first conducted interviews with MBA students in 1978 and used the results to make predictions about the types of jobs they would accept, results that proved accurate 68 percent of the time.

In this most recent research, Montgomery and Ramus used Sawtooth Software, a commercial product for conducting conjoint testing, to analysis how corporate social responsibility factors into MBA job choice. For the purposes of the survey, they broke corporate responsibility into four categories: caring about employees, caring for stakeholders (such as community residents), environmental sustainability and ethical business conduct. A fifth category was a model that shared all of the above characteristics.

According to their survey responses, 97.3 percent of students would be willing to make a financial sacrifice to work for a company that demonstrated all four characteristics of corporate responsibility. From a starting salary of $103,650 (the average amount students expected to earn in their first year), they said they would sacrifice an average of $14,902 a year, or 14.4 percent.

Going forward, Montgomery and Ramus plan to broaden their sample and begin looking at how gender and nationality figure into MBA job choices.

Thursday, July 31, 2008

Yale SOM Essay Topic Analysis 2008-2009

Yale’s SOM’s essay questions have undergone a noticeable makeover this year.  The addition of two very Yale-specific questions may be an attempt to prevent applicants from applying to the school as an afterthought, as its relatively small number of required essays (three last year and two in the years before) and open topics previously made it rather easy for candidates to submit material they had already drafted for other schools.

Given the possible concern on the part of the Yale adcom, it would likely be prudent to consider options (3.1) and/or (3.4) in response to the two personal statements (see below), as these questions get at the heart of Yale’s focus.  In electing to respond to one of these prompts, candidates have the chance to signal a strong interest and commitment to the SOM.

Let’s take a look at each of the school’s essays:

Essay 1: Why a Yale MBA?
What is the impact that you wish to have on the world? How will your previous experiences and a Yale MBA enhance your ability, in the short-term and long-term, to pursue a career that will allow you to achieve this impact? (500 words maximum)
While this prompt remains a career goals essay in essence, it is notable that Yale tweaked this question from last year, tailoring the question from “why an MBA?” to be more school-specific.  Taking the time to learn about the school’s curriculum, special programs and extracurricular activities - whether through a visit to campus, conversation with alumni or reading the Clear Admit School Guide to the Yale School of Management - will pay dividends here.

Another interesting adjustment is the framing in the context of larger impact – the question now focuses on an applicant’s vision. In answering this question, candidates should introduce goals that extend beyond simple personal interests and career objectives to encompass larger plans for specific industries and to discuss the greater ramifications of this influence.  Candidates need to reflect upon the skill set needed for their career interests and argue for how Yale’s programs will provide crucial aid in developing those skills.

Essay 2: Leadership Example
Describe a professional accomplishment that exhibits your leadership style. The accomplishment should include evidence of your leadership skills, a description of the actions you took, as well as the impact you had on your organization. (500 words maximum)
While Yale posted a similar leadership and teamwork-themed question last season, this year the emphasis has shifted more explicitly to the individual and the applicant’s unique approach.  The follow-up prompt asking for evidence of one’s leadership skills and the specifics of the approach mean that the key here is to show and not tell.

The accomplishment would ideally be one that highlights your initiative and drive, emphasizing your personal role while also placing the anecdote in the context of the big picture of a team effort.  A true leader understands how to utilize the skills and abilities of those on the team through motivation and leading through example.

As the question also asks about overall impact, it will be important to provide a clear “after” picture, pinpointing what changes resulted or what organization elements improved.

Essay 3: Personal Statement 1
Choose one of the following topics and answer it in essay form. Please indicate the topic number at the beginning of your essay. (500 words maximum)

(3.1) A central premise of our teaching about leadership at the Yale School of Management is that true leadership – leadership that helps to address a significant problem in a new way – is necessarily personal. It is only when personal passion aligns with meaningful aspirations that individuals are able to inspire others to act in support of an important goal or cause. What are you most passionate about, and how have you demonstrated a commitment to this passion?
Echoing Stanford’s standard “What matters most to you, and why?” essay, Yale is looking for candidates with distinct values and an overall motivating vision.  Applicants with a deep involvement in some cause outside of work or a strong commitment to their chosen industry might find a ready topic for this response, though candidates might be able to identify a common theme or motivating factor that runs throughout a number of their experiences or activities.  Another thing to note is that the prompt hints at an interest in hearing about passion that has or will inspire leadership, adding another nuance to keep in mind when selecting topics.

(3.2)   What personal achievement are you most proud of and why?
This question leaves the door open for a wide range of examples.  While the focus on “personal achievement” doesn’t necessarily preclude accomplishments from the workplace, it does indicate that the adcom is interested in the significance of the achievement on an individual level.  Of course, it might be beneficial to take the adcom up on their invitation to bring the subject matter into the personal realm, as the very open framing gives applicants the opportunity to discuss meaningful experiences that could help them stand out from others and demonstrate valuable skills and qualities that might not be evident elsewhere in their applications.

(3.3)   Describe a situation in which your values were challenged. How did you respond to the situation and what did you learn from it?
The most obvious reading of this prompt is as an inquiry about an ethical dilemma. Questions of this sort are designed to gauge an applicant’s ability to see two sides of a situation and appreciate the merits of both - and ultimately choose the best possible solution. First and foremost, you should make sure that the example you present represents a true dilemma. It’s not enough to simply discuss a situation where you chose to do the right thing; you need to be able to show that there was a compelling reason for you to have acted otherwise. The question lends itself to personal experiences as easily as professional ones, but it’s often well suited to examples of how one views and handles ethical complexity in the workplace. For instance, there are often instances of conflicts between people and profit that work well in this context.

After setting the scene in your essay, you should explore the dilemma in depth, analyzing each of your options and explaining the potential positive and negative consequences of each. Once you’ve acknowledged the difficulty of the situation, you should lead the reader through your decision-making process, explaining the reasons behind your ultimate decision. Ideally, your strong grasp of leadership and of problem-solving will be displayed by this analysis. Finally, you should present the results of your decision. Even if there were ultimately some negative consequences, it is important to stand by the decision you made and to be proud that you stood behind your values in this situation.

Beyond the ethics framework, you might also note that the “values” element of the question could provide a great platform to discuss a challenging cross-cultural experience, a great way to showcase international work experience or extensive time spent abroad.  If you choose to address a cultural transition, you will want to show that you are flexible and open to different ways of thinking.

(3.4)    A phrase often heard among SOM graduates is that they aspire to lead a life that is an “SOM Story” – that of a broadly engaged, values-based leader who owns and solves hard problems that matter. How will you create your own SOM Story? Describe a situation in which you devised and implemented a creative or innovative solution to a difficult problem. What obstacles did you face and how did you overcome them?
There’s a lot going on in this prompt.  Through asking how you will ultimately create your own “SOM story,” the primary question focuses on a time the applicant has creatively solved a difficult problem.  The response should therefore revolve around the process of pinpointing and overcoming a difficult problem and the challenges it presented, followed by a discussion of the innovative steps you took to overcome this obstacle.  While it would be ideal for the story to include evidence of “broad engagement” and “values-based” leadership, these can also be covered in some forward-looking comments at the beginning or end of the essay as part of an explanation of how the traits that you demonstrated in solving the problem will extend to the MBA program and beyond.

(3.5)    The Yale School of Management is a community of individuals with diverse backgrounds and interests. What unique attributes would you bring to the Class of 2011?
This question is a standard inquiry, wanting to see how candidates would fit in with the community and contribute to the class.  Remembering that the question asks for unique “attributes” and not simply for a description of great accomplishments or features, this response calls for candidates to reflect on a handful of interests and involvements that work in tandem with one another.

Also, keep in mind that personal qualities are not necessarily going to fly.  Stating that you are compassionate will not be as interesting as pinpointing a distinctive interest or hobby.  Thus, think about what characteristics and interests have led you to do, as motivations for pursuing certain work and activities is more relevant to your MBA candidacy.

(3.6)    What is the most difficult feedback you have received and how did you address it? Looking forward, what skills are you most eager to build or improve upon in business school?
Also appearing on Dartmouth’s application over the past years, this question pushes applicants to recount an anecdote detailing a growth and learning process.  This learning process is so important because it can reflect maturity, flexibility, adaptability, and humility – all important qualities needed to work effectively in a team.  In answering this question, you should identify and explain the issue while also addressing how you reacted to it.  Demonstrating a mature response and desire to improve is important, and effectiveness in facilitating this improvement should be apparent.  This learning process needs to not only be something that you underwent but something that you can continue to build upon through Yale’s MBA program.  Once again, knowledge of Yale’s specific programs will be helpful, as you can pinpoint classes or extracurriculars that will contribute to your ongoing growth.

(3.7)    Required for reapplicants: What steps have you taken to improve your candidacy since your last application?
This is a standard essay asking reapplicants to identify how they have progressed over the past year and strengthened their candidacy (through refining career objectives, solidifying their academic performance, etc.).

Essay 4: Personal Statement 2
Choose one (1) of the topics listed in Essay 3, or create a topic of your own about a subject that is meaningful to you, and answer it in essay form. Please indicate the topic number (or state the topic if it is not one of the ones listed) at the beginning of your essay. (500 words maximum)
Yale’s signaled a few values that it cares about through the six non-reapplicant questions above, so it might make sense to address a second one of those questions in order to tailor your application towards the school’s central focus.  However, this question also gives you the opportunity to ensure that the important aspects of your candidacy are covered in the application.  An applicant can thus introduce a discussion of an experience, value, or trait that is relevant to Yale’s MBA program.

Thursday, July 24, 2008

Updates from Yale SOM Admissions Director Bruce Delmonico

In a note late last week to Clear Admit’s Graham Richmond and other members of the Association of International Graduate Admissions Counselors (AIGAC) board, Yale School of Management (SOM) Director of Admissions Bruce Delmonico provided several updates about interesting things taking place on campus right now.

For starters, the school is preparing to welcome former U.K. Prime Minister Tony Blair to campus. Blair, who has been appointed the Howland Distinguished Fellow for 2008-2009, will teach a seminar on faith and globalization, to be jointly coordinated by the School of Management and Yale Divinity School. To learn more, check out this blog entry from the Clear Admit archives, which we posted back in March when Blair’s appointment was first announced.

Delmonico also shared that Yale will be welcoming ten new full-time faculty members to campus this fall, which he pointed out is “quite a large jump” for a school with fewer than 400 total students. Among the additions will be faculty in finance, marketing, operations, and other areas, including Gary Gorton, an expert in finance and banking from Wharton. Gorton will rejoin former Wharton colleague Andrew Metrick, an expert in venture capital and private equity who came to SOM this past year.

In other news, Yale instituted a new international student exchange program, partnering with schools in London, Barcelona, Bangalore and Beijing. The program, open to SOM students in the fall semester of their second year, is part of a larger effort by SOM to broaden its international programs. Up to 12 SOM students are expected to participate in this, the program’s launch year, three at each of the partner universities. A reciprocal number of students will attend SOM as part of the exchange.

Delmonico also shared that SOM became the 14th member of the Consortium for Graduate Study in Management, which works to enhance diversity in business education and management by increasing the representation of African Americans, Hispanic Americans and Native Americans in the enrollment of member schools. (We blogged on this, too, back in April.)

Finally, Delmonico also shared that Yale SOM has posted its essay questions and application deadlines for next year. Of course, you already knew that if you’ve been following our blog…

Wednesday, July 23, 2008

Yale SOM Deadline Update

The Yale SOM deadlines have had one alteration since we posted them last week. This change will result in an extra week for those interested in applying in the first round.

Round One:
Deadline: October 22, 2008
Notification: January 16, 2009

To see the full schedule for Yale’s application deadlines, as well as the 2008-2009 essay topics, click here.

Friday, July 18, 2008

Yale SOM Deadlines and Essay Topics 2008-2009

The Yale SOM deadlines for the 2008-2009 application season have recently been released!

The deadlines for the upcoming season are as follows:

Round one:
Deadline: October 22, 2008
Notification: January 16, 2009

Round two:
Deadline: January 7, 2009
Notification: April 10, 2009

Round three:
Deadline: March 18, 2009
Notification: May 8, 2008

Although the application itself will not go live until August, the Yale SOM essay topics for the 2008-2009 application have also been announced and are as follows:

1: Why a Yale MBA?
What is the impact that you wish to have on the world? How will your previous experiences and a Yale MBA enhance your ability, in the short-term and long-term, to pursue a career that will allow you to achieve this impact? (500 words maximum)

2: Leadership Example
Describe a professional accomplishment that exhibits your leadership style. The accomplishment should include evidence of your leadership skills, a description of the actions you took, as well as the impact you had on your organization. (500 words maximum)

3: Personal Statement 1
Choose one of the following topics and answer it in essay form. Please indicate the topic number at the beginning of your essay. (500 words maximum)

(1) A central premise of our teaching about leadership at the Yale School of Management is that true leadership – leadership that helps to address a significant problem in a new way – is necessarily personal. It is only when personal passion aligns with meaningful aspirations that individuals are able to inspire others to act in support of an important goal or cause. What are you most passionate about, and how have you demonstrated a commitment to this passion?

(2) What personal achievement are you most proud of and why?

(3) Describe a situation in which your values were challenged. How did you respond to the situation and what did you learn from it?

(4) A phrase often heard among SOM graduates is that they aspire to lead a life that is an “SOM Story” – that of a broadly engaged, values-based leader who owns and solves hard problems that matter. How will you create your own SOM Story? Describe a situation in which you devised and implemented a creative or innovative solution to a difficult problem. What obstacles did you face and how did you overcome them?

(5) The Yale School of Management is a community of individuals with diverse backgrounds and interests. What unique attributes would you bring to the Class of 2011?

(6) What is the most difficult feedback you have received and how did you address it? Looking forward, what skills are you most eager to build or improve upon in business school?

(7) Required for reapplicants: What steps have you taken to improve your candidacy since your last application?

4: Personal Statement 2
Choose one (1) of the topics listed in Essay 3, or create a topic of your own about a subject that is meaningful to you, and answer it in essay form. Please indicate the topic number (or state the topic if it is not one of the ones listed) at the beginning of your essay. (500 words maximum)

Tuesday, June 10, 2008

Trivia Tuesday: Earning a JD/MBA or MD/MBA

Welcome to another edition of Trivia Tuesday! Earlier in the year we looked at the options for students to earn Master’s degrees alongside their MBA studies through dual and joint degree arrangements. This week we’ll examine the opportunities for students interested in combining their business education with study in law or medicine. The growing demand for talented, knowledgeable managers in the health care industry makes the combination MD/MBA degree particularly valuable, and graduates who can analyze both the strategic and legal implications of a decision fill an important niche in the business world.

Wharton’s programs are typical of the JD/MBA and MD/MBA programs offered by leading business schools. As with most of the MBA/MA programs, candidates must apply to the two programs separately and admissions decisions are made independently. However, the longer length of JD and MD dual degree programs - typically four years for a JD/MBA and five years for an MD/MBA - mean that students have somewhat more leeway in deciding when to apply to the programs. For instance, students may apply to and begin both degree programs in the same year, or may choose to start the JD or MD first, applying to the MBA program in either their first or second year of study in the other program.

Kellogg’s MBA/JD program is differs slightly, in that the schools have managed to compact the three year law degree and two year MBA into just three years of on-campus study. The program also differs in that students apply through Kellogg only, though they spend their first year in full-time residency at the Law School.

Below is a summary of the JD and MD dual degree options offered by several of the leading MBA programs, along with links to sites offering more information about the dual degree or the law or medical school.

Chicago GSB:

JD with University of Chicago Law School
MD with Pritzker School of Medicine

Columbia Business School:

JD with Columbia Law School
MD with Columbia University College of Physicians & Surgeons
DDS with Columbia University College of Dental Medicine

Cornell/Johnson:

JD with Cornell University Law School
MD with Weill Cornell Medical College

Duke/Fuqua:

JD with the Duke University School of Law
MD with the Duke University School of Medicine

Harvard Business School:

JD with Harvard Law School
MD with Harvard Medical School

Kellogg:

JD with Northwestern’s School of Law
MD with the Feinberg School of Medicine at Northwestern

Michigan/Ross:

JD at the University of Michigan’s Law School
MD at the University of Michigan’s Medical School

MIT Sloan:

No JD or MD dual degree programs

NYU/Stern:

JD at NYU School of Law

Stanford:

JD with the Stanford School of Law
No formal MD dual degree, though students may pursue a medical degree separately from the MBA

Tuck:

No JD program; offers a Master’s of Science in Environmental Law through Vermont Law School
MD with Dartmouth Medical School

UC-Berkeley/Haas:

JD with either UC Berkeley’s Boalt Hall School of Law or UC Hastings College of the Law

UCLA/Anderson:

JD with UCLA School of Law
MD with David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA

UVA/Darden:

JD with the University of Virginia School of Law

Wharton:

JD with Penn Law School
MD with Penn Medicine, DMD with Penn Dental Medicine, VMD with Penn Veterinary Medicine

Yale SOM:

JD at Yale Law School
MD at the Yale School of Medicine

For more information on dual and joint degree options and on graduates’ career paths, be sure to check out the individual schools’ websites, as well as the Dual Degrees and Career Statistics sections of the Clear Admit School Guides!